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Steroids, and what its done to the game

I know Im beating a dead horse by blogging about steroid use in professional sports. I have been thinking about this for a long time, and I wanted to finally blog about it. A lot of people dont care if athletes use steroids. In fact there are quite a few people out there that encourage the athletes to use them so they can witness better performances on the field. Well, I think thats absolutely selfish. Its wrong, and it degrades the sport.

Remember this guy? Sure you do. Thats Mark McGwire. He broke the single home run record that was formly held by Roger Maris. We all remember that day. September 8th 1998. Steve Trachsel on the mound facing McGwire. There it went. Over the left field fence. Number 62. The lucky stadium worker that found it, in my humble opinion, should have made some kind of deal with MLB for finding that baseball. Or kept it. McGwire would finish the season with 70 home runs. Sammy Sosa finished with 66 that season. And we all know that three seasons later, this guy would break that 70 home run mark.

Yup. Barry Bonds shattered that record with 73. A remarkable season for him. Barry Bonds has so many awards to his name its not even funny. Hes played with two teams his entire career ( Pittsburgh/San Francisco )and hes played in 14 all-star games. Quite the player, you’d say. So when exactly did these two players decide to start taking steroids? Well, McGwire in many interviews this last January said he used them when he first got to Oakland. He also put the blame on Jose Canseco. Jose Canseco even wrote a book on the steroid use thats taking place in baseball. Canseco also stated in an interview on the Chelsea Lately show that he wasnt trying to “out” baseball players. He was simply trying to identify a problem in the league, and get other players to back him up on it. Well, it all backfired on you Mr. Canseco.

So in the end with Bonds, and McGwire, was their entire career a total wash? Should all of their statistics have an asteriks by it? Rafael Palmerio tested positive on August 1st 2005 for steroids. He went before a congressional hearing, and denied ever using them. Canseco stated that he personally injected Palmeiro with steroids. Oddly enough, our good friend Rafael is a member of the 500 HR, 3000 Hit club. Palmeiro isnt offically retired. He just hasnt played baseball since 2005. Whats he waiting for? This whole steroid thing to blow over? To make sure his stats will stick before he retires? Who knows.

The following players were connected to steroids, either use or possession, in the Mitchell Report:

So what has all this madness done to our beloved American sport? In my opinion it has ruined it. Although, the home run chase back in 1998 probably saved baseball from the horrid 1994 baseball strike, but since then I think its done some serious damage. A lot of these players on the list have come forward, admitted they were wrong, apologized, and moved on. I guess in a sense, I should too. But recently when I got my hands on the Mitchell Report I was heartbroken that a lot of these players that I thought would have nothing to do with steroids had taken them or at least were accused. Their accomplishments arent real to me anymore. Theyve cheated the game. Theyve used performance enhancement drugs to propel themselves to do above and beyond what they normally arent capable of doing. Dont get me wrong. You still have to be an athlete to play this game. You cant just be some shlub off the street, eat some steroids, and magically hit 70 home runs in one season. I think these guys are incredible athelets for being able to do what they do. But Id rather see them hit 70 home runs by working hard, spending extra time in the batting cage, and with the batting coach, and studying each pitcher before they face them. They probably did that…but steroids helped them throw, hit, and run faster.

So because these players can perform beyond their normal capabilities it increases their value as a player. People say ” oh so what. So he took steroids. He can hit 500 foot home runs now. He can hit over 60 in a season.” Sure. Thats great. We all love seeing home runs. But now are beloved favorite player thats sending bombs to the outfield now wants to be paid millions on top of millions because hes doing that. And it doesnt help that guys like Scott Boras are encouraging that. So you ask ” well, whats the problem?” Well, Ill tell you what the problem is. Now simple people like you, me, and the rest of the baseball fans out there cant sit in seats behind home plate. Or we cant sit in seats behind the dugout. Why? Because this guy injecting himself with trash, and hitting a thousand home runs a game is making so much money that they have to raise ticket prices. They have to charge $10.00 for a beer. They have to charge $30.00 for two hotdogs, and a soda. Thats the problem. For a family of four, they have to sit in the cheap seats on the 500 level deck because four tickets at the field view are $70.00 a pop. Get what Im saying?

But I digress. The only think that keeps a crowd from coming to the ballpark is a losing team nowadays. And Im fine with that. I just think its criminal for these players to get paid so much money, and the fan is the one that loses out. Anyone that comes to the stadium shouldnt be limited to where they can sit to watch the game of baseball.

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